R.E.M.
R.E.M. was an American rock band from Athens, Georgia, formed in 1980 by lead singer Michael Stipe, lead guitarist Peter Buck, bassist/backing vocalist Mike Mills, and drummer Bill Berry. One of the first popular alternative rock bands, R.E.M. were noted for Buck's ringing, arpeggiated guitar style, Stipe's particular vocal quality, and Mills' melodic basslines and backing vocals. R.E.M. released their first single, "Radio Free Europe", in 1981 on the independent record label Hib-Tone. The single was followed by the Chronic Town EP in 1982, the band's first release on I.R.S. Records. In 1983, the group released its critically acclaimed debut album, Murmur, and built its reputation over the next few years through subsequent releases, constant touring, and the support of college radio. Following years of underground success, R.E.M. achieved a mainstream hit in 1987 with the single "The One I Love". The group signed to Warner Bros. Records in 1988, and began to espouse political and environmental concerns while playing large arenas worldwide. By the early 1990s, when alternative rock began to experience broad mainstream success, R.E.M. was viewed by subsequent acts such as Nirvana and Pavement as a pioneer of the genre. The band then released its two most commercially successful albums, Out of Time (1991) and Automatic for the People (1992), which veered from the band's established sound and catapulted it to international fame. R.E.M.'s 1994 release, Monster, was a return to a more rock-oriented sound, but still continued its run of success. The band began its first tour in six years to support the album; the tour was marred by medical emergencies suffered by the three band members. In 1996, R.E.M. re-signed with Warner Bros. for a reported US$80 million, at the time the most expensive recording contract in history. Its 1996 release, New Adventures in Hi-Fi, though critically acclaimed, fared worse commercially than expected. The following year, Bill Berry left the band, while Stipe, Buck, and Mills continued the group as a trio. Through some changes in musical style, the band continued its career into the next decade with mixed critical and commercial success, despite having sold more than 85 million records worldwide and becoming one of the world's best-selling music artists of all time.4 In 2007, the band was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, in their first year of eligibility. R.E.M. disbanded amicably in September 2011, announcing the split on its website. Contents 1 History 1.1 1980–81: Formation 1.2 1981–87: I.R.S. Records and cult success 1.3 1987–90: Breakthrough 1.4 1990–94: Non-touring years and international success 1.5 1994–97: Return to touring and continued success 1.6 1997–2000: Berry's departure and Up 1.7 2000–07: Reveal and Around the Sun 1.8 2007–11: Accelerate, Collapse into Now, and breakup 2 Musical style 3 Legacy 4 Campaigning and activism 5 Members 6 Discography 7 See also 8 Notes 9 References 10 External links History 1980–81: Formation In January 1980, Michael Stipe met Peter Buck in Wuxtry Records, the Athens record store where Buck worked. The pair discovered that they shared similar tastes in music, particularly in punk rock and protopunk artists like Patti Smith, Television, and The Velvet Underground. Stipe said, "It turns out that I was buying all the records that Buck was saving for himself."5 Stipe and Buck soon met fellow University of Georgia students Mike Mills and Bill Berry,6 who had played music together since high school.7 The quartet agreed to collaborate on several songs; Stipe later commented that "there was never any grand plan behind any of it".5 Their still-unnamed band spent a few months rehearsing and played its first show on April 5, 1980, at a friend's birthday party held in a converted Episcopal church in Athens. After considering names like "Twisted Kites", "Cans of Piss", and "Negro Wives", the band settled on "R.E.M." (which stands for the stage of sleep called rapid eye movement), which Stipe selected at random from a dictionary.8 Mitch Easter sitting at a mixing board next to two members of Dreams So Real Record producer Mitch Easter (far left) was important in defining the band's sound, producing all of their material until 1984 The band members eventually dropped out of school to focus on their developing group.9 They found a manager in Jefferson Holt, a record store clerk who was so impressed by an R.E.M. performance in his hometown of Chapel Hill, North Carolina, that he moved to Athens.10 R.E.M.'s success was almost immediate in Athens and surrounding areas; the band drew progressively larger crowds for shows, which caused some resentment in the Athens music scene.11 Over the next year and a half, R.E.M. toured throughout the Southern United States. Touring was arduous because a touring circuit for alternative rock bands did not then exist. The group toured in an old blue van driven by Holt, and lived on a food allowance of $2 each per day.12 During the summer of 1981, R.E.M. recorded its first single, "Radio Free Europe", at producer Mitch Easter's Drive-In Studios in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. The single was released on the local independent record label Hib-Tone with an initial pressing of one thousand copies, which quickly sold out.13 Despite its limited pressing, the single garnered critical acclaim, and was listed as one of the ten best singles of the year by The New York Times.14 1981–87: I.R.S. Records and cult success "Radio Free Europe" Menu 0:00 Originally released as the band's debut single on Hib-Tone in 1981, "Radio Free Europe" was re-recorded for R.E.M.'s debut album Murmur in 1983. Stipe's singing helped establish interest in his lyrics as enigmatic and obscure. Problems playing this file? See media help. R.E.M. recorded the Chronic Town EP with Mitch Easter in October 1981, and planned to release it on a new indie label named Dasht Hopes.15 However, I.R.S. Records acquired a demo of the band's first recording session with Easter that had been circulating for months.16 The band turned down the advances of major label RCA Records in favor of I.R.S., with whom it signed a contract in May 1982. I.R.S. released Chronic Town that August as its first American release.17 A positive review of the EP by NME praised the songs' auras of mystery, and concluded, "R.E.M. ring true, and it's great to hear something as unforced and cunning as this."18 I.R.S. first paired R.E.M. with producer Stephen Hague to record its debut album. Hague's emphasis on technical perfection left the band unsatisfied, and the band members asked the label to let them record with Easter.19 I.R.S. agreed to a "tryout" session, allowing the band to return to North Carolina and record the song "Pilgrimage" with Easter and producing partner Don Dixon. After hearing the track, I.R.S. permitted the group to record the album with Dixon and Easter.20 Because of its bad experience with Hague, the band recorded the album via a process of negation, refusing to incorporate rock music clichés such as guitar solos or then-popular synthesizers, in order to give its music a timeless feel.21 The completed album, Murmur, was greeted with critical acclaim upon its release in 1983, with Rolling Stone listing the album as its record of the year.22 The album reached number 36 on the Billboard album chart.23 A re-recorded version of "Radio Free Europe" was the album's lead single and reached number 78 on the Billboard singles chart in 1983.24 Despite the acclaim awarded the album, Murmur sold only about 200,000 copies, which I.R.S.'s Jay Boberg felt was below expectations.25 R.E.M. made its first national television appearance on Late Night with David Letterman in October 1983,26 during which the group performed a new, unnamed song.27 The piece, eventually titled "So. Central Rain (I'm Sorry)", became the first single from the band's second album, Reckoning (1984), which was also recorded with Easter and Dixon. The album met with critical acclaim; NME's Mat Snow wrote that Reckoning "confirms R.E.M. as one of the most beautifully exciting groups on the planet".28 While Reckoning peaked at number 27 on the US album charts—an unusually high chart placing for a college rock band at the time—scant airplay and poor distribution overseas resulted in it charting no higher than number 91 in Britain.29 A black-and-white photograph of Michael Stipe and Peter Buck performing on stage with spotlights on them. Stipe is to the left singing into a microphone, wearing a three-piece suit, he has bleach-blond hair and is obscuring Mike Mills, whose bass guitar is visible from behind him. Peter Buck is playing guitar and wearing a button-up pattern shirt behind Stipe to the photograph's right with a sneer on his face. Michael Stipe (left) and Peter Buck (right) on stage in Ghent, Belgium, during R.E.M.'s 1985 tour. The band's third album, Fables of the Reconstruction (1985), demonstrated a change in direction. Instead of Dixon and Easter, R.E.M. chose producer Joe Boyd, who had worked with Fairport Convention and Nick Drake, to record the album in England. The band members found the sessions unexpectedly difficult, and were miserable due to the cold winter weather and what they considered to be poor food;30 the situation brought the band to the verge of break-up.31 The gloominess surrounding the sessions ended up providing the context for the album itself. Lyrically, Stipe began to create storylines in the mode of Southern mythology, noting in a 1985 interview that he was inspired by "the whole idea of the old men sitting around the fire, passing on ... legends and fables to the grandchildren".32 They toured in Canada in July and August 1985, and throughout Europe in October of that year, including in The Netherlands, England (one concert was held at the famous Hammersmith Palais in London), Ireland, Scotland, France, Switzerland, Belgium and West Germany.33 On October 2, 1985, the group played a concert in Bochum, West Germany, for the German TV show Rockpalast. Stipe had bleached his hair blond during this time.3435363738 Fables of the Reconstruction performed poorly in Europe and its critical reception was mixed, with some critics regarding it as dreary and poorly recorded.39 As with the previous records, the singles from Fables of the Reconstruction were mostly ignored by mainstream radio. Meanwhile, I.R.S. was becoming frustrated with the band's reluctance to achieve mainstream success.40 For its fourth album, R.E.M. enlisted John Mellencamp producer Don Gehman. The result, Lifes Rich Pageant (1986) featured Stipe's vocals closer to the forefront of the music. In a 1986 interview with the Chicago Tribune, Peter Buck related, "Michael is getting better at what he's doing, and he's getting more confident at it. And I think that shows up in the projection of his voice."41 The album improved markedly upon the sales of Fables of the Reconstruction and eventually peaked at number 21 on the Billboard album chart. The single "Fall on Me" also picked up support on commercial radio.42 The album was the band's first to be certified gold for selling 500,000 copies.43 While American college radio remained R.E.M.'s core support, the band was beginning to chart hits on mainstream rock formats; however, the music still encountered resistance from Top 40 radio.44 Following the success of Lifes Rich Pageant, I.R.S. issued Dead Letter Office, a compilation of tracks recorded by the band during their album sessions, many of which had either been issued as B-sides or left unreleased altogether. Shortly thereafter, I.R.S. compiled R.E.M.'s music video catalog (except "Wolves, Lower") as the band's first video release, Succumbs. 1987–90: Breakthrough Scott Litt smiling to the camera Scott Litt produced a string of R.E.M.'s breakthrough albums in the 1980s and 1990s. Don Gehman was unable to produce R.E.M.'s fifth album, so he suggested the group work with Scott Litt.45 Litt would be the producer for the band's next five albums. Document (1987) featured some of Stipe's most openly political lyrics, particularly on "Welcome to the Occupation" and "Exhuming McCarthy", which were reactions to the conservative political environment of the 1980s under American President Ronald Reagan.46 Jon Pareles of The New York Times wrote in his review of the album, "'Document' is both confident and defiant; if R.E.M. is about to move from cult-band status to mass popularity, the album decrees that the band will get there on its own terms."47 Document was R.E.M.'s breakthrough album, and the first single "The One I Love" charted in the Top 20 in the US, UK, and Canada.23 By January 1988, Document had become the group's first album to sell a million copies.48 In light of the band's breakthrough, the December 1987 cover of Rolling Stone declared R.E.M. "America's Best Rock & Roll Band".49 Frustrated that its records did not see satisfactory overseas distribution, R.E.M. left I.R.S. when its contract expired and signed with the major label Warner Bros. Records.50 Though other labels offered more money, R.E.M. ultimately signed with Warner Bros.—reportedly for an amount between $6 million and $12 million—due to the company's assurance of total creative freedom.51 In the aftermath of the group's departure, I.R.S. released the 1988 "best of" compilation Eponymous (assembled with input from the band members) to capitalize on assets the company still possessed.52 The band's 1988 Warner Bros. debut, Green, was recorded in Nashville, Tennessee, and showcased the group experimenting with its sound.53 The record's tracks ranged from the upbeat first single "Stand" (a hit in the United States),54 to more political material, like the rock-oriented "Orange Crush" and "World Leader Pretend", which address the Vietnam War and the Cold War, respectively.55 Green has gone on to sell four million copies worldwide.56 The band supported the album with its biggest and most visually developed tour to date, featuring back-projections and art films playing on the stage.57 After the Green tour, the band members unofficially decided to take the following year off, the first extended break in the band's career.58 In 1990 Warner Bros. issued the music video compilation Pop Screen to collect clips from the Document and Green albums, followed a few months later by the video album Tourfilm featuring live performances filmed during the Green World Tour.59 1990–94: Non-touring years and international success "Losing My Religion" Menu 0:00 Sample of "Losing My Religion" from Out of Time (1991). The mandolin-driven song became R.E.M.'s biggest American hit, peaking at number four on the Billboard charts. Problems playing this file? See media help. R.E.M. reconvened in mid-1990 to record its seventh album, Out of Time. In a departure from Green, the band members often wrote the music with non-traditional rock instrumentation including mandolin, organ, and acoustic guitar instead of adding them as overdubs later in the creative process.60 Released in March 1991, Out of Time was the band's first album to top both the US and UK charts.23 The record eventually sold 4.2 million copies in the US alone,61 and about 12 million copies worldwide by 1996.56 The album's lead single "Losing My Religion" was a worldwide hit that received heavy rotation on radio, as did the music video on MTV.62 "Losing My Religion" was R.E.M.'s highest-charting single in the US, reaching number four on the Billboard charts.23 "There've been very few life-changing events in our career because our career has been so gradual," Mills said years later. "If you want to talk about life changing, I think 'Losing My Religion' is the closest it gets".63 The album's second single, "Shiny Happy People" (one of three songs on the record to feature vocals from Kate Pierson of fellow Athens band The B-52's), was also a major hit, reaching number 10 in the US and number six in the UK.23 Out of Time garnered R.E.M. seven nominations at the 1992 Grammy Awards, the most nominations of any artist that year. The band won three awards: one for Best Alternative Music Album and two for "Losing My Religion", Best Short Form Music Video and Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal.64 R.E.M. did not tour to promote Out of Time; instead the group played a series of one-off shows, including an appearance taped for an episode of MTV Unplugged65 and released music videos for each song on the video album This Film Is On. The MTV Unplugged session of "Losing My Religion" was recorded with members of the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra in Madison, Georgia, at Madison-Morgan Cultural Center.66 After spending some months off, R.E.M. returned to the studio in 1991 to record its next album. Late in 1992, the band released Automatic for the People. Though the group had intended to make a harder-rocking album after the softer textures of Out of Time,67 the somber Automatic for the People "seemed to move at an even more agonized crawl", according to Melody Maker.68 The album dealt with themes of loss and mourning inspired by "that sense of ... turning thirty", according to Buck.69 Several songs featured string arrangements by former Led Zeppelin bassist John Paul Jones. Considered by a number of critics (as well as by Buck and Mills) to be the band's best album,70 Automatic for the People reached numbers one and two on UK and US charts, respectively, and generated the American Top 40 hit singles "Drive", "Man on the Moon", and "Everybody Hurts".23 The album would sell over fifteen million copies worldwide.56 As with Out of Time, there was no tour in support of the album. The decision to forgo a tour, in conjunction with Stipe's physical appearance, generated rumors that the singer was dying or HIV-positive, which were vehemently denied by the band.68 1994–97: Return to touring and continued success "What's the Frequency, Kenneth?" Menu 0:00 Sample of "What's the Frequency, Kenneth?" from Monster (1994). The song's loud, distorted guitars were an intentional departure from the sound of R.E.M.'s previous two albums. Problems playing this file? See media help. After the band released two slow-paced albums in a row, R.E.M.'s 1994 album Monster was, as Buck said, "a 'rock' record, with the rock in quotation marks." In contrast to the sound of its predecessors, the music of Monster consisted of distorted guitar tones, minimal overdubs, and touches of 1970s glam rock.71 Like Out of Time, Monster topped the charts in both the US and UK.23 The record sold about nine million copies worldwide.56 The singles "What's the Frequency, Kenneth?" and "Bang and Blame" were the band's last American Top 40 hits, although all the singles from Monster reached the Top 30 on the British charts.23 Warner Bros. assembled the music videos from the album as well as those from Automatic for the People for release as Parallel in 1995.72 In January 1995, R.E.M. set out on its first tour in six years. The tour was a huge commercial success, but the period was difficult for the group.73 On March 1, Berry collapsed on stage during a performance in Lausanne, Switzerland, having suffered a brain aneurysm. He had surgery immediately and recovered fully within a month. Berry's aneurysm was only the beginning of a series of health problems that plagued the Monster Tour. Mills had to undergo abdominal surgery to remove an intestinal adhesion in July; a month later, Stipe had to have an emergency surgery to repair a hernia.74 Despite all the problems, the group had recorded the bulk of a new album while on the road. The band brought along eight-track recorders to capture its shows, and used the recordings as the base elements for the album.75 The final three performances of the tour were filmed and released in home video form as Road Movie.76 R.E.M. re-signed with Warner Bros. Records in 1996 for a reported $80 million (a figure the band constantly asserted originated with the media), rumored to be the largest recording contract in history at that point.77 The group's 1996 album New Adventures in Hi-Fi debuted at number two in the US and number one in the UK.23 The five million copies of the album sold were a reversal of the group's commercial fortunes of the previous five years.78 Time writer Christopher John Farley argued that the lesser sales of the album were due to the declining commercial power of alternative rock as a whole.79 That same year, R.E.M. parted ways with manager Jefferson Holt, allegedly due to sexual harassment charges levied against him by a member of the band's home office in Athens.80 The group's lawyer Bertis Downs assumed managerial duties.81 1997–2000: Berry's departure and Up Bill Berry behind a drum kit After drummer Bill Berry quit in 1997, R.E.M. continued as a trio. In April 1997, the band convened at Buck's Kauai vacation home to record demos of material intended for the next album. The band sought to reinvent its sound and intended to incorporate drum loops and percussion experiments.82 Just as the sessions were due to begin in October, Berry decided, after months of contemplation and discussions with Downs and Mills, to tell the rest of the band that he was quitting.83 Berry told his band mates that he would not quit if they would break up as a result, so Stipe, Buck, and Mills agreed to carry on as a three-piece with his blessing.84 Berry publicly announced his departure three weeks later in October 1997. Berry told the press, "I'm just not as enthusiastic as I have been in the past about doing this anymore . . . I have the best job in the world. But I'm kind of ready to sit back and reflect and maybe not be a pop star anymore."82 Stipe admitted that the band would be different without a major contributor: "For me, Mike, and Peter, as R.E.M., are we still R.E.M.? I guess a three-legged dog is still a dog. It just has to learn to run differently."84 The band cancelled its scheduled recording sessions as a result of Berry's departure. "Without Bill it was different, confusing", Mills later said. "We didn't know exactly what to do. We couldn't rehearse without a drummer."85 The remaining members of R.E.M. resumed work on the album in February 1998 at Toast Studios in San Francisco.86 The band ended its decade-long collaboration with Scott Litt and hired Pat McCarthy to produce the record. Nigel Godrich was taken on as assistant producer, and drafted in Screaming Trees member Barrett Martin and Beck's touring drummer Joey Waronker. The recording process was plagued with tension, and the group came close to disbanding. Bertis Downs called an emergency meeting where the band members sorted out their problems and agreed to continue as a group.87 Led off by the single "Daysleeper", Up (1998) debuted in the top ten in the US and UK. However, the album was a relative failure, selling 900,000 copies in the US by mid-1999 and eventually selling just over two million copies worldwide.61 While R.E.M.'s American sales were declining, the group's commercial base was shifting to the UK, where more R.E.M. records were sold per capita than any other country and the band's singles regularly entered the Top 20.88 A year after Up's release, R.E.M. wrote the instrumental score to the Andy Kaufman biographical film Man on the Moon, a first for the group. The film took its title from the Automatic for the People song of the same name.89 The song "The Great Beyond" was released as a single from the Man on the Moon soundtrack album. "The Great Beyond" only reached number 57 on the American pop charts, but was the band's highest-charting single ever in the UK, reaching number three in 2000.23 2000–07: Reveal and Around the Sun R.E.M. performing onstage, with Michael Stipe singing, Peter Buck playing guitar, and Scott McCaughey playing keyboards R.E.M. on tour in 2008, with long-time collaborator Scott McCaughey R.E.M. recorded the majority of its twelfth album Reveal (2001) in Canada and Ireland from May to October 2000.90 Reveal shared the "lugubrious pace" of Up,91 and featured drumming by Joey Waronker, as well as contributions by Scott McCaughey (a co-founder of the band The Minus 5 with Buck) and Posies founder Ken Stringfellow. Global sales of the album were over four million, but in the United States Reveal sold about the same number of copies as Up.92 The album was led by the single "Imitation of Life", which reached number six in the UK.93 Writing for Rock's Backpages, The Rev. Al Friston described the album as "loaded with golden loveliness at every twist and turn", in comparison to the group's "essentially unconvincing work on New Adventures in Hi-Fi and Up."94 Similarly, Rob Sheffield of Rolling Stone called Reveal "a spiritual renewal rooted in a musical one" and praised its "ceaselessly astonishing beauty."95 In 2003, Warner Bros. released the compilation album and DVD In Time: The Best of R.E.M. 1988–2003 and In View: The Best of R.E.M. 1988–2003, which featured two new songs, "Bad Day" and "Animal". At a 2003 concert in Raleigh, North Carolina, Berry made a surprise appearance, performing backing vocals on "Radio Free Europe". He then sat behind the drum kit for a performance of the early R.E.M. song "Permanent Vacation", marking his first performance with the band since his retirement.96 R.E.M. released Around the Sun in 2004. During production of the album in 2002, Stipe said, "album sounds like it's taking off from the last couple of records into unchartered R.E.M. territory. Kind of primitive and howling".97 After the album's release, Mills said, "I think, honestly, it turned out a little slower than we intended for it to, just in terms of the overall speed of songs."98 Around the Sun received a mixed critical reception, and peaked at number 13 on the Billboard charts.99 The first single from the album, "Leaving New York", was a Top 5 hit in the UK.100 For the record and subsequent tour, the band hired a new full-time touring drummer, Bill Rieflin, who had previously been a member of several industrial music acts such as Ministry and Pigface.101 The video album Perfect Square was released that same year. Mike Mills plays bass guitar and sings into a microphone while wearing a Nudie suit Bassist Mike Mills performing in concert in 2008 EMI released a compilation album covering R.E.M.'s work during its tenure on I.R.S. in 2006 called And I Feel Fine... The Best of the I.R.S. Years 1982–1987 along with the video album When the Light Is Mine: The Best of the I.R.S. Years 1982–1987—the label had previously released the compilations The Best of R.E.M. (1991), R.E.M.: Singles Collected (1994), and R.E.M.: In the Attic – Alternative Recordings 1985–1989 (1997). That same month, all four original band members performed during the ceremony for their induction into the Georgia Music Hall of Fame.102 While rehearsing for the ceremony, the band recorded a cover of John Lennon's "#9 Dream" for Instant Karma: The Amnesty International Campaign to Save Darfur, a tribute album benefiting Amnesty International.103 The song—released as a single for the album and the campaign—featured Bill Berry's first studio recording with the band since his departure almost a decade earlier.104 In October 2006, R.E.M. was nominated for induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in its first year of eligibility.105 The band was one of five nominees accepted into the Hall that year, and the induction ceremony took place in March 2007 at New York's Waldorf-Astoria Hotel. The group—which was inducted by Pearl Jam lead singer Eddie Vedder—performed three songs with Bill Berry; "Gardening at Night," "Man on the Moon" and "Begin the Begin" as well as a cover of "I Wanna Be Your Dog." 106 2007–11: Accelerate, Collapse into Now, and breakup Work on the group's fourteenth album commenced in early 2007. The band recorded with producer Jacknife Lee in Vancouver and Dublin, where it played five nights in the Olympia Theatre between June 30 and July 5 as part of a "working rehearsal".107 R.E.M. Live, the band's first live album (featuring songs from a 2005 Dublin show), was released in October 2007.108 The group followed this with the 2009 live album Live at The Olympia, which features performances from its 2007 residency. R.E.M. released Accelerate in early 2008. The album debuted at number two on the Billboard charts,109 and became the band's eighth album to top the British album charts.110 Rolling Stone reviewer David Fricke considered Accelerate an improvement over the band's previous post-Berry albums, calling it "one of the best records R.E.M. have ever made."111 A black-and-white photo of the members of R.E.M. embracing and smiling onstage R.E.M. on their final tour in 2008 In 2010, R.E.M. released the video album R.E.M. Live from Austin, TX—a concert recorded for Austin City Limits in 2008. The group recorded its fifteenth album, Collapse into Now (2011), with Jacknife Lee in locales including Berlin, Nashville, and New Orleans. For the album, the band aimed for a more expansive sound than the intentionally short and speedy approach implemented on Accelerate.112 The album debuted at number five on the Billboard 200, becoming the group's tenth album to reach the top ten of the chart.113 This release fulfilled R.E.M.'s contractual obligations to Warner Bros., and the band began recording material without a contract a few months later with the possible intention of self-releasing the work.114 On September 21, 2011, R.E.M. announced via its website that it was "calling it a day as a band". Stipe said that he hoped fans realized it "wasn't an easy decision": "All things must end, and we wanted to do it right, to do it our way."115 Long-time associate and former Warner Bros. Senior Vice President of Emerging Technology Ethan Kaplan has speculated that shake-ups at the record label influenced the group's decision to disband.116 The group discussed breaking up for several years, but was encouraged to continue after the lackluster critical and commercial performance of Around the Sun; according to Mills, "We needed to prove, not only to our fans and critics but to ourselves, that we could still make great records."117 The band members finished their collaboration by assembling the compilation album Part Lies, Part Heart, Part Truth, Part Garbage 1982–2011, which was released in November 2011. The album is the first to collect songs from R.E.M.'s I.R.S. and Warner Bros. tenures, as well as three songs from the group's final studio recordings from post-Collapse into Now sessions.118 In November, Mills and Stipe did a brief span of promotional appearances in British media, ruling out the option of the group ever reuniting.119 In 2014, Unplugged: The Complete 1991 and 2001 Sessions was released for Record Store Day.120 Digital download collections of I.R.S. and Warner Bros. rarities followed. Later in the year, the band compiled the video album box set REMTV, which collected their two Unplugged performances along with several other documentaries and live shows, while their record label released the box set 7IN—83–88, made up of 7" vinyl singles.121 In December 2015, the band members agreed to a distribution deal with Concord Bicycle Music to re-release their Warner Bros. albums.122 Musical style "Fall on Me" Menu 0:00 Sample of "Fall on Me" from Lifes Rich Pageant (1986), which showcases Peter Buck's jangly, arpeggiated guitar style and features Michael Stipe and Mike Mills harmonizing in the chorus. Problems playing this file? See media help. In a 1988 interview, Peter Buck described typical R.E.M. songs as, "Minor key, mid-tempo, enigmatic, semi-folk-rock-balladish things. That's what everyone thinks and to a certain degree, that's true."123 All songwriting is credited to the entire band, even though individual members are sometimes responsible for writing the majority of a particular song.124 Each member is given an equal vote in the songwriting process; however, Buck has conceded that Stipe, as the band's lyricist, can rarely be persuaded to follow an idea he does not favor.68 Among the original line-up, there were divisions of labor in the songwriting process: Stipe would write lyrics and devise melodies, Buck would edge the band in new musical directions, and Mills and Berry would fine-tune the compositions due to their greater musical experience.125 Michael Stipe sings in what R.E.M. biographer David Buckley described as "wailing, keening, arching vocal figures".126 Stipe often harmonizes with Mills in songs; in the chorus for "Stand", Mills and Stipe alternate singing lyrics, creating a dialogue.127 Early articles about the band focused on Stipe's singing style (described as "mumbling" by The Washington Post), which often rendered his lyrics indecipherable.128 Creem writer John Morthland wrote in his review of Murmur, "I still have no idea what these songs are about, because neither me nor anyone else I know has ever been able to discern R.E.M.'s lyrics."129 Stipe commented in 1984, "It's just the way I sing. If I tried to control it, it would be pretty false."130 Producer Joe Boyd convinced Stipe to begin singing more clearly during the recording of Fables of the Reconstruction.131 Stipe later called chorus lyrics of "Sitting Still" from R.E.M. debut album, Murmur, "nonsense", saying in a 1994 online chat, "You all know there aren't words, per se, to a lot of the early stuff. I can't even remember them." In truth, Stipe carefully crafted the lyrics to many early R.E.M. songs.132 Stipe explained in 1984 that when he started writing lyrics they were like "simple pictures", but after a year he grew tired of the approach and "started experimenting with lyrics that didn't make exact linear sense, and it's just gone from there."130 In the mid-1980s, as Stipe's pronunciation while singing became clearer, the band decided that its lyrics should convey ideas on a more literal level.133 Mills explained, "After you've made three records and you've written several songs and they've gotten better and better lyrically the next step would be to have somebody question you and say, are you saying anything? And Michael had the confidence at that point to say yes . . ."134 Songs like "Cuyahoga" and "Fall on Me" on Lifes Rich Pageant dealt with such concerns as pollution.135 Stipe incorporated more politically oriented concerns into his lyrics on Document and Green. "Our political activism and the content of the songs was just a reaction to where we were, and what we were surrounded by, which was just abject horror," Stipe said later. "In 1987 and '88 there was nothing to do but be active."136 Stipe has since explored other lyrical topics. Automatic for the People dealt with "mortality and dying. Pretty turgid stuff", according to Stipe,137 while Monster critiqued love and mass culture.136 Peter Buck playing guitar and smiling Peter Buck's guitar-playing style has defined R.E.M.'s sound Peter Buck's style of playing guitar has been singled out by many as the most distinctive aspect of R.E.M.'s music. During the 1980s, Buck's "economical, arpeggiated, poetic" style reminded British music journalists of 1960s American folk rock band The Byrds.138 Buck has stated "guitarist Roger McGuinn was a big influence on me as a guitar player",139 but said it was Byrds-influenced bands, including Big Star and The Soft Boys, that inspired him more.140 Comparisons were also made with the guitar playing of Johnny Marr of alternative rock contemporaries The Smiths. While Buck professed being a fan of the group, he admitted he initially criticized the band simply because he was tired of fans asking him if he was influenced by Marr,124 whose band had in fact made their debut after R.E.M.140 Buck generally eschews guitar solos; he explained in 2002, "I know that when guitarists rip into this hot solo, people go nuts, but I don't write songs that suit that, and I am not interested in that. I can do it if I have to, but I don't like it."141 Mike Mills' melodic approach to bass playing is inspired by Paul McCartney of The Beatles and Chris Squire of Yes; Mills has said, "I always played a melodic bass, like a piano bass in some ways . . . I never wanted to play the traditional locked into the kick drum, root note bass work."142 Mills has more musical training than his band mates, which he has said "made it easier to turn abstract musical ideas into reality."139 Legacy Pavement members standing before a brick wall posing in a black-and-white photo Pavement is one of several alternative rock bands to cite R.E.M. as an influence; the band even wrote the song "The Unseen Power of the Picket Fence" about R.E.M. R.E.M. was pivotal in the creation and development of the alternative rock genre. AllMusic stated, "R.E.M. mark the point when post-punk turned into alternative rock."9 In the early 1980s, the musical style of R.E.M. stood in contrast to the post-punk and new wave genres that had preceded it. Music journalist Simon Reynolds noted that the post-punk movement of the late 1970s and early 1980s "had taken whole swaths of music off the menu", particularly that of the 1960s, and that "After postpunk's demystification and New Pop's schematics, it felt liberating to listen to music rooted in mystical awe and blissed-out surrender." Reynolds declared R.E.M., a band that recalled the music of the 1960s with its "plangent guitar chimes and folk-styled vocals" and who "wistfully and abstractly conjured visions and new frontiers for America", one of "the two most important alt-rock bands of the day."143 With the release of Murmur, R.E.M. had the most impact musically and commercially of the developing alternative genre's early groups, leaving in its wake a number of jangle pop followers.144 R.E.M.'s early breakthrough success served as an inspiration for other alternative bands. Spin referred to the "R.E.M. model"—career decisions that R.E.M. made which set guidelines for other underground artists to follow in their own careers. Spin's Charles Aaron wrote that by 1985, "They'd shown how far an underground, punk-inspired rock band could go within the industry without whoring out its artistic integrity in any obvious way. They'd figured out how to buy in, not sellout-in other words, they'd achieved the American Bohemian Dream."145 Steve Wynn of Dream Syndicate said, "They invented a whole new ballgame for all of the other bands to follow whether it was Sonic Youth or the Replacements or Nirvana or Butthole Surfers. R.E.M. staked the claim. Musically, the bands did different things, but R.E.M. was first to show us you can be big and still be cool."146 Biographer David Buckley stated that between 1991 and 1994, a period that saw the band sell an estimated 30 million albums, R.E.M. "asserted themselves as rivals to U2 for the title of biggest rock band in the world."147 Over the course of its career, the band has sold over 85 million records worldwide.102 Later alternative bands such as Nirvana, Pavement, Radiohead, Coldplay, Pearl Jam and Live, have drawn inspiration from R.E.M.'s music. "When I was 15 years old in Richmond, Virginia, they were a very important part of my life," Pavement's Bob Nastanovich said, "as they were for all the members of our band." Pavement devoted the song "Unseen Power of the Picket Fence" from the No Alternative compilation (1993) to discussing Chronic Town and Reckoning.148 Kurt Cobain of Nirvana was a vocal fan of R.E.M., and had plans to collaborate on a musical project with Stipe before his death in April 1994.149 Cobain told Rolling Stone in an interview earlier that year, "I don’t know how that band does what they do. God, they’re the greatest. They’ve dealt with their success like saints, and they keep delivering great music."150 Campaigning and activism Michael Stipe looking to the left of the camera, holding a bag and digital media player Michael Stipe has used his celebrity status to support political and humanitarian causes; he is seen here at the 2007 Tribeca Film Festival, which was created to renew that neighborhood of New York City after the September 11, 2001 attacks. Throughout R.E.M.'s career, its members sought to highlight social and political issues. According to the Los Angeles Times, R.E.M. was considered to be one of the United States' "most liberal and politically correct rock groups."151 The band's members were "on the same page" politically, sharing a liberal and progressive outlook.152 Mills admitted that there was occasionally dissension between band members on what causes they might support, but acknowledged "Out of respect for the people who disagree, those discussions tend to stay in-house, just because we'd rather not let people know where the divisions lie, so people can't exploit them for their own purposes." An example is that in 1990 Buck noted that Stipe was involved with People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, but the rest of the band were not.153 R.E.M. helped raise funds for environmental, feminist and human rights causes, and were involved in campaigns to encourage voter registration. During the Green tour, Stipe took time during sets to inform the audience about a variety of pressing socio-political issues.154 Through the late 1980s and 1990s, the band (particularly Stipe) increasingly used its media coverage on national television to mention a variety of causes it felt were important. One example is when the band attended the 1991 MTV Video Music Awards, during which Stipe wore a half-dozen white shirts emblazoned with slogans including "rainforest", "love knows no colors", and "handgun control now".155 R.E.M. helped raise awareness of Aung San Suu Kyi and human rights violations in Burma, when they worked with the Freedom Campaign and the US Campaign for Burma.156 Stipe himself ran ads for the 1988 supporting Democratic presidential candidate and Massachusetts governor Michael Dukakis over then-Vice President George H. W. Bush.157 In 2004, the band participated in the Vote for Change tour that sought to mobilize American voters to support Democratic presidential candidate John Kerry.158 R.E.M.'s political stance, particularly coming from a wealthy rock band under contract to a label owned by a multinational corporation, received criticism from former Q editor Paul Du Noyer, who criticized the band's "celebrity liberalism", saying, "It's an entirely pain-free form of rebellion that they're adopting. There's no risk involved in it whatsoever, but quite a bit of shoring up of customer loyalty."159 From the late 1980s, R.E.M. was involved in the local politics of its hometown of Athens, Georgia.160 Buck explained to Sounds in 1987, "Michael always says think local and act local—we have been doing a lot of stuff in our town to try and make it a better place."161 The band often donated funds to local charities and to help renovate and preserve historic buildings in the town.162 R.E.M.'s political clout was credited with the narrow election of Athens mayor Gwen O'Looney twice in the 1990s.163 Members Bill Berry – drums, percussion, backing vocals (1980–1997; guest performances in 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008) Peter Buck – guitar, mandolin, banjo (1980–2011) Mike Mills – bass guitar, backing vocals, piano, keyboards (1980–2011) Michael Stipe – lead vocals (1980–2011) Additional musiciansBuren Fowler – guitar (1984–1985) Peter Holsapple – guitar, keyboard, piano (1989–1991) Scott McCaughey – guitar, bass, keyboards, synthesizers, piano, vocals (1994–2011) Nathan December – guitar (1995) Ken Stringfellow – bass, guitar, keyboards, synthesizers, piano, vocals (1998–2007) Joey Waronker – drums (1998–2002) Barrett Martin – drums (2001) Bill Rieflin – drums (2003–2011) Discography Main articles: R.E.M. discography and List of songs recorded by R.E.M. Studio albumsMurmur (1983) Reckoning (1984) Fables of the Reconstruction (1985) Lifes Rich Pageant (1986) Document (1987) Green (1988) Out of Time (1991) Automatic for the People (1992) Monster (1994) New Adventures in Hi-Fi (1996) Up (1998) Reveal (2001) Around the Sun (2004) Accelerate (2008) Collapse into Now (2011) See also Portal icon Alternative music portal Portal icon Georgia (U.S. state) portal List of alternative rock musicians Timeline of alternative rock Notes 1.Jump up ^ Gray, p. 68 2.Jump up ^ Gray, p. 47 3.Jump up ^ Gray, p. 194 4.Jump up ^ Tierney, Mike (April 20, 2013). "Mike Mills: A Rock Star of Fantasy Sports". The New York Times. Retrieved May 18, 2013. 5.^ Jump up to: a b Gumprecht, Blake. "R.E.M.". Alternative America. Winter 1983. 6.Jump up ^ Holdship, Bill. "R.E.M.: Rock Reconstruction Getting There". Creem. September 1985. 7.Jump up ^ Buckley, p. 30 8.Jump up ^ Buckley, p. 39 9.^ Jump up to: a b Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "R.E.M > Biography". AllMusic. Retrieved December 3, 2010. 10.Jump up ^ Buckley, p. 41 11.Jump up ^ Buckley, p. 46 12.Jump up ^ Buckley, p. 53–54 13.Jump up ^ Sullivan, p. 27 14.Jump up ^ Gray, p. 497 15.Jump up ^ Buckley, p. 59 16.Jump up ^ Buckley, p. 61–63 17.Jump up ^ Buckley, p. 66–67 18.Jump up ^ Grabel, Richard. "Nightmare Town". NME. December 11, 1982. 19.Jump up ^ Buckley, p. 72 20.Jump up ^ Buckley, p. 78 21.Jump up ^ Buckley, p. 78–82 22.Jump up ^ Buckley, p. 73 23.^ Jump up to: a b c d e f g h i j Buckley, p. 357–58 24.Jump up ^ "Radio Free Europe". Rolling Stone. December 9, 2004. Retrieved on September 21, 2011. 25.Jump up ^ Buckley, p. 95 26.Jump up ^ Gray, p. 432 27.Jump up ^ Gray, p. 434 28.Jump up ^ Snow, Mat. "American Paradise Regained: R.E.M.'s Reckoning". NME. 1984. 29.Jump up ^ Buckley, p. 115 30.Jump up ^ Buckley, p. 131–32 31.Jump up ^ Buckley, p. 135 32.Jump up ^ "Interview with R.E.M.". Melody Maker. June 15, 1985. 33.Jump up ^ White, Darryl. "1985 Concert Chronology". R.E.M. Timeline. Retrieved January 1, 2015. 34.Jump up ^ slicing up eyeballs (July 29, 2011). "Vintage Video: Full R.E.M. concert from 1985's Fables tour filmed for Rockpalast". Slicing Up Eyeballs. Retrieved January 1, 2015. 35.Jump up ^ Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "Artist Biography". AllMusic. Retrieved January 1, 2015. "Stipe, whose on-stage behavior was always slightly strange, entered his most bizarre phase, as he put on weight, dyed his hair bleached blonde, and wore countless layers of clothing." 36.Jump up ^ White, Darryl. "1985 Concert Chronology". R.E.M. Timeline. Retrieved January 1, 2015. "This show was recorded for the German TV show Rockpalast WDR-TV and it's well worth finding a copy of it to see Stipe's blonde hair, some great cover songs and the hilarious moment when Stipe goes out into the crowd during 'We Walk' and pats a big bearded guy on the head." 37.Jump up ^ Thompkins, Tim (August 29, 2007). "Michael Stipe (R.E.M.) Interview (1985)". Murmurs.com / YouTube. Retrieved January 1, 2015. 38.Jump up ^ Hann, Michael (15 November 2012). "Old music: REM – Feeling Gravity's Pull". The Guardian (London: Guardian News and Media). Retrieved January 1, 2015. "I bought tickets for the first of REM's shows at Hammersmith Palais in October 1985... The star, of course, was Michael Stipe. His hair was cropped and dyed blond." 39.Jump up ^ Buckley, p. 140 40.Jump up ^ Buckley, p. 159 41.Jump up ^ Popson, Tom. "Onward and Upward and Please Yourself". Chicago Tribune. October 17, 1986. 42.Jump up ^ Buckley, p. 151 43.Jump up ^ Fletcher, p. 142 44.Jump up ^ Buckley, p. 160 45.Jump up ^ Fletcher, p. 146 46.Jump up ^ De Muir, Harold. "There's No Reason It Shouldn't Be A Hit". East Coast Rocker. July 10, 1987. 47.Jump up ^ Pareles, Jon (September 13, 1987). "R.E.M. conjures dark times on 'Document'". The New York Times. Archived from the original on January 11, 2008. Retrieved December 30, 2007. 48.Jump up ^ Fletcher, p. 157 49.Jump up ^ Buckley, p. 163 50.Jump up ^ Buckley, p. 174 51.Jump up ^ Buckley, p. 177. Here, Jay Boberg claimed that R.E.M.'s deal with Warner Bros. was for $22 million, which Peter Buck disputed as "definitely wrong". 52.Jump up ^ Fletcher, p. 170–71 53.Jump up ^ Buckley, p. 179 54.Jump up ^ Buckley, p. 180 55.Jump up ^ Buckley, p. 183 56.^ Jump up to: a b c d Fletcher, p. 296 57.Jump up ^ Buckley, p. 184 58.Jump up ^ Buckley, p. 198 59.Jump up ^ Fletcher, p. 181 60.Jump up ^ Buckley, p. 209 61.^ Jump up to: a b Buckley, p. 287 62.Jump up ^ Buckley, p. 205 63.Jump up ^ Buckley, p. 204 64.Jump up ^ Pareles, Jon (February 26, 1992). "Cole's 'Unforgettable' Sweeps the Grammys". The New York Times. Retrieved December 30, 2007. 65.Jump up ^ Buckley, p. 213 66.Jump up ^ "Watch "Losing My Religion" Live From MTV’s 10th Anniversary Celebration". R.E.M.Hq. 2014-11-14. Retrieved 2016-03-08. 67.Jump up ^ Buckley, p. 216 68.^ Jump up to: a b c Fricke, David. "Living Up to Out of Time/Remote Control: Parts I and II". Melody Maker. October 3, 1992. 69.Jump up ^ Buckley, p. 218 70.Jump up ^ Buckley, p. 217 71.Jump up ^ Buckley, p. 236 72.Jump up ^ Fletcher, p. 270 73.Jump up ^ Buckley, p. 248 74.Jump up ^ Buckley, p. 251–55 75.Jump up ^ Buckley, p. 256 76.Jump up ^ Fletcher, p. 274 77.Jump up ^ Buckley, p. 258 78.Jump up ^ Buckley, p. 269 79.Jump up ^ Farley, Christopher John (December 16, 1996). "Waiting for the Next Big Thing". Time. Retrieved December 30, 2007. 80.Jump up ^ DeRogatis, Jim (Fall 1996). "New Adventures in R.E.M.". Request. Retrieved December 30, 2006. 81.Jump up ^ Buckley, p. 259 82.^ Jump up to: a b Longino, Miriam. "R.E.M.: To a different beat the famed Athens band becomes a threesome as drummer Bill Berry leaves to 'sit back and reflect'". Atlanta Journal-Constitution. October 31, 1997. 83.Jump up ^ Buckley, p. 276 84.^ Jump up to: a b Buckley, p. 280 85.Jump up ^ Black, p. 232 86.Jump up ^ Black, p. 233 87.Jump up ^ Buckley, p. 286 88.Jump up ^ Buckley, p. 292 89.Jump up ^ "R.E.M. To Score 'Man On The Moon'". VH1. March 1, 1999. Retrieved December 30, 2007. 90.Jump up ^ Black, p. 248–49 91.Jump up ^ Buckley, p. 303 92.Jump up ^ Buckley, p. 310 93.Jump up ^ Buckley, p. 305 94.Jump up ^ Friston, The Rev. Al. "REM: Reveal (Warner Bros.)". Rock's Backpages. December 2001. 95.Jump up ^ Sheffield, Rob (May 1, 2001). "R.E.M.: Reveal". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on November 4, 2007. Retrieved October 2, 2007. 96.Jump up ^ MTV News staff (October 14, 2003). "For The Record: Quick News On Hilary Duff, JC Chasez And Corey Taylor, Mary J. Blige, Deftones, Marilyn Manson & More". MTV. Retrieved July 1, 2007. 97.Jump up ^ Devenish, Colin (September 6, 2002). "R.E.M. Get Primitive". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on January 11, 2008. Retrieved December 24, 2007. 98.Jump up ^ Graff, Gary (September 11, 2006). "R.E.M. Bringing Back The Rock On New Album". Billboard. Retrieved December 24, 2007. 99.Jump up ^ Cohen, Jonathan (September 5, 2006). "R.E.M. Plots One-Off Berry Reunion, New Album". Billboard. Retrieved July 1, 2007. 100.Jump up ^ "It's a Prydz and Stone double top". NME. UK. October 3, 2004. Retrieved December 30, 2007. 101.Jump up ^ Nusca, Andrew J. (May 2008). "Bill Rieflin – Steering R.E.M. Into Harder Waters". DRUMMagazine.com. Retrieved May 5, 2011. 102.^ Jump up to: a b "R.E.M. inducted into Music Hall of Fame". USA Today. September 17, 2006. Retrieved May 12, 2012. 103.Jump up ^ Grossberg, Josh (March 14, 2007). "R.E.M. Back in the Studio". E! Online. Retrieved July 26, 2010. 104.Jump up ^ Cohen, Jonathan (March 12, 2007). "Original R.E.M. Quartet Covers Lennon For Charity". Billboard. Retrieved May 17, 2008. 105.Jump up ^ Ryan, Joal (October 30, 2006). "R.E.M., Van Halen Headed to Hall?". E! Online. Retrieved July 26, 2010. 106.Jump up ^ Cohen, Jonathan (March 13, 2007). "R.E.M., Van Halen Lead Rock Hall's '07 Class". Billboard. Retrieved July 1, 2007. 107.Jump up ^ "REM begin recording new album". NME. UK. May 24, 2007. Retrieved July 3, 2007. 108.Jump up ^ Cohen, Jonathan (August 21, 2007). "R.E.M. Preps First Concert CD/DVD Set". Billboard. Retrieved October 2, 2007. 109.Jump up ^ Hasty, Katie (April 9, 2008). "Strait Speeds Past R.E.M. To Debut At No. 1". Billboard. Retrieved April 10, 2008. 110.Jump up ^ Sexton, Paul (April 7, 2008). "R.E.M. Earns Eighth U.K. No. 1 Album". Billboard. Retrieved April 10, 2008. 111.Jump up ^ Fricke, David (April 3, 2008). "Accelerate review". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on April 23, 2008. Retrieved April 10, 2008. 112.Jump up ^ Goodman, William (November 3, 2010). "R.E.M. Tap Eddie Vedder, Patti Smith for Next Album". Spin. Retrieved March 7, 2011. 113.Jump up ^ Caulfield, Keith (March 16, 2011). "Lupe Fiasco's 'Lasers' Lands at No. 1 on Billboard 200". Billboard. Retrieved March 30, 2011. 114.Jump up ^ Perpetua, Matt (July 8, 2011). "R.E.M. Begin Work on New Album". Rolling Stone. Straight Arrow Publishers Company, LP. Retrieved September 21, 2011. 115.Jump up ^ Hilton, Robin (September 21, 2011). "R.E.M. Calls It A Day, Announces Breakup". NPR.org. Retrieved September 21, 2011. 116.Jump up ^ Perpetua, Matthew (September 21, 2011). "R.E.M. Breaks Up After Three Decades". Rolling Stone. Straight Arrow Publishers Company, LP. Retrieved September 21, 2011. 117.Jump up ^ Fricke, David (September 26, 2011). "Exclusive: Mike Mills on Why R.E.M. Are Calling It Quits". Rolling Stone. Straight Arrow Publishers Company, LP. Retrieved September 26, 2011. 118.Jump up ^ McKinley, Jr., James C. (September 21, 2011). "The End of R.E.M., and They Feel Fine". The New York Times. Retrieved September 21, 2011. 119.Jump up ^ Hogan, Mike (November 3, 2011). "R.E.M. Won't Reunite, Michael Stipe Says on U.K. TV". Spin. Retrieved November 5, 2011. 120.Jump up ^ Newman, Jason (March 17, 2014). "R.E.M. to Release 2 'Unplugged' Concerts for Record Store Day". Rolling Stone. Wenner Media, LLC. 121.Jump up ^ Rosen, Craig (November 18, 2014). "Shiny Happy Records: R.E.M.'s Peter Buck Talks 7IN— 83-88 and REMTV Reissues". Yahoo! Music. 122.Jump up ^ Newman, Melinda (December 15, 2015). "R.E.M. Taps Concord Bicycle to Handle Group's Warner Bros. Catalog: Exclusive". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. 123.Jump up ^ Halbersberg, Elianna. "Peter Buck of R.E.M.". East Coast Rocker. November 30, 1988. 124.^ Jump up to: a b The Notorious Stuart Brothers. "A Date With Peter Buck". Bucketfull of Brains. December 1987. 125.Jump up ^ Buckley, p. 85 126.Jump up ^ Buckley, p. 87 127.Jump up ^ Buckley, p. 180–81 128.Jump up ^ Sasfy, Joe. "Reckoning with R.E.M.". The Washington Post. May 10, 1984. 129.Jump up ^ Morthland, John. "R.E.M.: Murmur". Creem. July 1983. 130.^ Jump up to: a b Platt, John. "R.E.M.". Bucketfull of Brains. December 1984. 131.Jump up ^ Buckley, p. 133 132.Jump up ^ Buckley, p. 88 133.Jump up ^ Buckley, p. 143 134.Jump up ^ Buckley, p. 150 135.Jump up ^ Buckley, p. 156–57 136.^ Jump up to: a b Olliffe, Michael. "R.E.M. in Perth". On the Street. January 17, 1995. 137.Jump up ^ Cavanagh, David. "Tune in, cheer up, rock out". Q. October 1994. 138.Jump up ^ Buckley, p. 77 139.^ Jump up to: a b Buckley, p. 81 140.^ Jump up to: a b Fletcher, p. 115 141.Jump up ^ Buckley, p. 80 142.Jump up ^ Buckley, p. 105 143.Jump up ^ Reynolds, Simon. Rip It Up and Start Again: Postpunk 1978–1984. Penguin, 2005. ISBN 0-14-303672-6, p. 392 144.Jump up ^ Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "American Alternative Rock / Post-Punk". AllMusic. Retrieved December 3, 2010. 145.Jump up ^ Aaron, Charles. "The R.E.M. method and other rites of passage". Spin: 20 Years of Alternative Music. Three Rivers Press, 2005. ISBN 0-307-23662-5, p. 18 146.Jump up ^ Sullivan, p. 169 147.Jump up ^ Buckley, p. 200 148.Jump up ^ Aaron, Charles. "R.E.M. Comes Alive". Spin. August 1995. 149.Jump up ^ Buckley, p. 239–40 150.Jump up ^ Fricke, David. "Kurt Cobain: The Rolling Stone Interview." Rolling Stone. January 27, 1994 151.Jump up ^ Philips, Chuck. "R.E.M.’s Former Manager Denies Allegations of Sex Harassment". Los Angeles Times. June 21, 1996. 152.Jump up ^ Buckley, p. 155 153.Jump up ^ Buckley, p. 197 154.Jump up ^ Buckley, p. 186 155.Jump up ^ Buckley, p. 195–96 156.Jump up ^ "Bands back Burma activist Suu Kyi". BBC Online. September 22, 2004. Retrieved June 30, 2007. 157.Jump up ^ McLean, Craig (March 8, 2008). "REM reborn". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved December 11, 2009. 158.Jump up ^ Tyrangiel, Josh (October 3, 2004). "Born to Stump". Time. Retrieved July 1, 2007. 159.Jump up ^ Buckley, p. 299 160.Jump up ^ Buckley, p. 192 161.Jump up ^ Wilkinson, Roy. "The Secret File of R.E.M.". Sounds. September 12, 1987. 162.Jump up ^ Buckley, p. 194 163.Jump up ^ Buckley, p. 195 References Black, Johnny. Reveal: The Story of R.E.M. Backbeat, 2004. ISBN 0-87930-776-5 Buckley, David. R.E.M.: Fiction: An Alternative Biography. Virgin, 2002. ISBN 1-85227-927-3 Gray, Marcus. It Crawled from the South: An R.E.M. Companion. Da Capo, 1997. Second edition. ISBN 0-306-80751-3 Fletcher, Tony. Remarks Remade: The Story of R.E.M. Omnibus, 2002. ISBN 0-7119-9113-8. Platt, John (editor). The R.E.M. Companion: Two Decades of Commentary. Schirmer, 1998. ISBN 0-02-864935-4 Sullivan, Denise. Talk About the Passion: R.E.M.: An Oral Biography. Underwood-Miller, 1994. ISBN 0-88733-184-X External links Find more about R.E.M. at Wikipedia's sister projects Search Wiktionary Definitions from Wiktionary Search Commons Media from Commons Search Wikiquote Quotations from Wikiquote Search Wikidata Data from Wikidata Official website R.E.M. Discography at AllMusic R.E.M. Discography at Discogs R.E.M. at DMOZ R.E.M. at the Internet Movie Database Category:R.E.M. Category:1980 establishments in Georgia (U.S. state) Category:2011 disestablishments in Georgia (U.S. state) Category:Alternative rock groups from Georgia (U.S. state) Category:Brit Award winners Category:Grammy Award winners Category:I.R.S. Records artists Category:Jangle pop groups Category:Musical groups disestablished in 2011 Category:Musical groups established in 1980 Category:Musical groups from Athens, Georgia Category:Musical quartets Category:Musical trios Category:New West Records artists Category:Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductees Category:Rock music groups from Georgia (U.S. state) Category:Warner Bros. Records artists Category:Concord Bicycle Music artists